JX Nippon Oil postpones the Kawasaki cracker maintenance in 2013

(plastemart) -- Japan's top refiner, JX Nippon Oil& Energy Corp, is set to skip planned maintenance shutdown at its naphtha cracker at Kawasaki in 2013. The company, which last conducted a turnaround at the unit, with capacity to make 443,000 tpa ethylene this year, is likely to conduct the next maintenance shutdown in 2016.

We remind that, as MRC reported ealier, JX Nippon Oil announced that on 6 November the company along with SK Global Chemical Co had begun construction of a new facility to produce paraxylene in Ulsan, South Korea. The annual production capacity of the new plant is said to be 1 million tonns of paraxylene. The unite will be managed by a joint venture company of JX Nippon Oil and SK Global Chemical - Ulsan Aromatics (UAC).
MRC

(plastemart) -- KBC Advanced Technologies has signed a contract for a large optimization and efficiency project with Fujian Refining and Petrochemical Corp. (FREP), a joint venture comprised of Fujian Petrochemical Co., ExxonMobil, China Petroleum & Petrochemical Co. and Saudi Aramco.

Under the multi-million US dollar contract, KBC will provide a 5-year Petro-SIM and ProSteam software license, build a refinery and petrochemical integrated flowsheet model, online utility optimizer and complex-wide LP model, and train Fujian personnel on software model building and applications.

As MRC informed earlier, Saudi Aramco had begun talking to prospective buyers for products from its Fujian Refining and Petrochemical Company (FREP) complex at Quangzhou in China's Fujian province. FREP production facilities comprise an 800,000 tpa steam cracker, a 400,000 tpa PP plant, a 400,000 tpa LLDPE plant, a 400,000 tpa HDPE plant, a 120,000 tpa butadiene plant, a 700,000 tpa paraxylene plant and a 260,000 tpa benzene plant at Quanzhou.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - By 2019, the capacity of the world market of plastic pipes will reach USD80 billion, according to the research made by the marketing company Ceresana.

In 2011, the share of plastic pipes made of PVC accounted for more than 55%. The second most popular material for pipes production is polyethylene, in particularly, HDPE, which was used for the production of 28 to 45% of the total amount of pipes. But despite the popularity of the traditional materials, the proportion of such materials used in production of pipes, as ABS plastic, polybutylene, polyamide, will increase in the near future, according to experts.

North America and Western Europe have given up their positions as for the sales of plastic pipes to the Asia Pacific region, which occupies the first place and accounts for 50% of the global demand for plastic pipes. According to Ceresana's outlook, the Asia Pacific region will further increase the consumption of plastic pipes in 2019 - to more than 60%.

We remindl that, as MRC reported previously, this year Russian companies increased production of plastic products. Over the past nine months, the production volume of polymer goods increased by 10% compared to that of the previous year. The largest increase accounted for plastic pipes. In January-September, the total production of plastic pipes, hoses and fittings by Russian plants made about 528.400 tonnes, up 26% compared to the same period a year ago.
MRC

(petroworld) -- Spanish energy giant Repsol is in talks with Pemex regarding a new strategic partnership, following up on a promise made by new Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto to open the state-owned company to new investors.

The new alliance comes as Repsol tries to reorganise its Latin American business, having been stripped of its shares in the now nationalised Argentinian producer YPF earlier this year.


At present Pemex is Repsol’s third largest shareholder, holding 9.5% of the company, and may look to gain more influence. Earlier this year, the company sided with one of Chairman Antonio Brufau’s rivals and tried to force management changes, but the two firms have since found common ground.

Pemex will also be looking gain from Repsol’s expertise in production. The company is looking to boost its output having fallen behind in recent years and not being able to replicate the record 3.4m barrel haul it produced back in 2004.

“There have been formal contacts in recent months on several areas between Repsol and Pemex. I’m optimistic for a more solid partnership between the two,” commented Fluvio Ruiz, Pemex board member.

Repsol S.A is an integrated Spanish oil and gas company with operations in 28 countries. The bulk of its assets are located in Spain.

Petroleos Mexicanos or Pemex is a Mexican state-owned petroleum company. Pemex has a total asset worth of USD415.75 billion, and is the world's second largest non-publicly listed company by total market value. Its products include petrochemicals, natural gas, liquid gas, sulphur, gasoline, kerosene, and diesel.

MRC

(fibre2fashion) -- The increasing gap between the demand and supply of gas, due to rising demand and limited supply, is posing serious challenges before the GCC petrochemical industry, as the gap is likely to further widen in the coming years.

While gas consumption in Iran, Middle East and the UAE exceeds production, Saudi Arabia satisfies its own demand by producing 99.23 billion cubic metres of gas annually. However, the demand-supply gap presently gets balanced to some extent as Egypt, Algeria, Oman and Qatar stand out to be net exporters of gas.

Meanwhile, the distressing fiscal crisis impeding recovery of the EU and the US economies is adding to the adversities.

Speaking at the 7th annual Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Forum, UAE Minister of Environment and Water, Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad said financial crisis in the US coupled with political impasse over looming fiscal crisis, and financial slump and debt crises in the EU are retarding global recovery. Besides, the swiftly rising eastern economies are also losing pace.

These situations have raised concerns about worsening of the financial crisis, and are feared to hit the regional as well as global petrochemical producers, and even negatively impact their earnings.

Dr. Fahad noted that though GCC region enjoys a more stable economy, global financial slump is a matter of major concern, as it has raised doubts over future development and its effect on the region’s strategic hydrocarbon industries. This is more so as interconnected factors like the population growth, economy and government policies have been responsible for the growth in oil and petrochemical demand, since historic times.

MRC